Riddles In The Past
by XxXPlainOldMeXxX
Summary: Dumbledore had a plan that involved going back in time but only one of them can go back and fix Tom Riddle. Will the person chosen be successful or will they be in even more danger than they could possibly ever imagine? Will they fall in love or is it impossible to not hate him? Only 1944 will tell...
1. The Office

Hermione, Harry, Ron and Ginny were all gathered in Dumbledore's office. The silver haired wizard had asked for their presence after that evening's dinner. He had an extremely important matter to discuss with the four wizarding soldiers.

The old man sat in his velvet covered chair which had pure gold arm rests, his elbows braced on the arm rests with his fingertips touching each other, his gaze focusing on his student individually.

The first of the four he watched was Ginevra Weasley. Her red hair stood out against the dim lighting in his spacious office. Her pale skin seemed paler, if it was even possible, no doubt due to the anxiety of waiting to hear another of their friends names who had succumbed to death at the hands of Lord Voldemort. Her green eyes constantly flickered to the boy who sat next to her, Harry Potter, for reassurance that she was safe and protected when in his presence. He was her comfort, he was her backbone. It was clear to see that she needed him as much as he needed her. Without the other, they were lost, only half of themselves.

Said boy was sitting straight, as though he was forced to sit against a plank. Not knowing why they were there was obviously having an effect on his already tense muscles. The stiffness of his movements made anger swell within Dumbledore. A young boy should move with ease. Harry Potter should have been acting the way his father and his friends had done before him. He should have played pranks on unsuspecting students and should be sitting in his office solely for a scolding. Before allowing the anger and frustration appear on his face, he moved his eyes to the boy sitting beside him.

Ronald Weasley had vibrant hair like his sister, however, there was a distinct contrast between the life of his hair and the life in his face. The handsome, freckled faced boy had a vacant look on his face. His eyes were lifeless, as though he had nothing left; he was void of emotion and thoughts. Now it seemed as though he was just the shell of the boy who was once alive and happy, without a care in the world. Pity found its way onto Dumbledore's face, which he quickly attempted to wipe away.

Hermione Granger was wringing her hands in her lap, her face covered by a look of deep concentration looking down at them. She seemed nervous about what Dumbledore had to tell them. She was by far the smartest witch he had ever met in his entire life. Her brain worked in magical ways, often arriving at what one would consider a complicated answer to a complicated question at an alarming speed. It was quite clear from just her demeanour and the way she carried herself that she always liked to be one step ahead and have multiple solutions to a problem that may arise, in the case of failure. She liked to be well prepared if her dedication to research and homework was any indication.

As if sensing his gaze, she looked up, looking him directly in the eye and effectively pulling him out of his musings. She pulled a strand of her brown curly hair behind her ear with a shaky hand. She almost silently cleared her throat, raised her head and with obvious confidence asked the question he had been waiting for one of them to ask him.

"Professor, why did you ask us here?" Dumbledore leaned back slightly and rested against the back of his chair, a small smile forming on his aging face. This small movement of his lips reassured the students that nothing was wrong for the moment and they all visibly relaxed, small smiles of their own gracing their attractive yet haunted faces. Dumbledore knew that those expressions would change to expressions of confusion as soon as he uttered the words he was dreading to say. Once he told them of his theory there would be no going back. Once only one of them did it, everything would rest on their shoulders. He already felt pangs of guilt in his chest just thinking about how much strain one of them would be under.

"I want one of you to go back in time. Back to Tom Riddle's time."


	2. Time To Go

**Hi everyone! In my first chapter I didn't write a disclaimer so here it is haha! I don't own the Harry Potter series and all its characters even though I wish I did! I also just wanted to say how grateful and happy I am with the people who decided to follow my story! It means a lot as I'm not too confident when it comes to my writing. This is just a way for my to get a bit of practice and work on my flaws. I hope to upload a chapter weekly but I may not be able to all the time because of university and all that! If you have any questions or criticism then hit me with them! Read and review please! Hope you enjoy! :) **

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Shock and confusion swept across their faces as a moment of tense silence passed over them. The bodies stock still as they processed what their headmaster had just said to them. It seemed as though their four brains were all working at the same time if the way they pelted their comments and questions at Dumbledore wasn't evidence.

"I'll go. I can finally kill him and then I'll have my parents. It has to be me anyway; I am the 'Chosen One' after all."

"Professor, why don't you go back? You're far more powerful than any of us, you could kill him in an instant."

"That's impossible. You can't go that far back in time! There is no suggestion whatsoever in any of the books that I've read that it is possible outside of some crazy wizard's imagination. Not even time turners are capable of sending people that far back in time! There aren't even dark magic spells that can accomplish that!"

"You're loony, you're a bloody nutter! Haven't you realised we're in the middle of a war! We can't just abandon fighting to go back in time and who's to say that we'll be successful in getting to Voldemort when he's younger? I always knew you were a bloody crazy old man. I told my parents I did but nobody ever listens to me…"

"Please, give me a chance to explain. I'll answer all of your questions if you allow me to," he said, arching an eyebrow at them. Their voices immediately quietened and a comfortable silence fell over them. Their faces impatient, wanting to get answers as soon as possible whereas Dumbledore merely took his time. Slowly resting further back in his chair, he got comfortable and began to answer them individually. "Miss Weasley, I fear it would be far more dangerous and inevitably useless for me to go back. I was already a professor in Hogwarts during Tom Riddle's time. If there were two of me then I would be caught, proving to be completely useless. I would surely end up in Azkaban for meddling with time. I'm sure you understand that going back in time to change the future is illegal and is punishable by death or a long stay in Azkaban." Ginny looked down, a faint blush rising on her cheeks, her seemingly logical question answered, only making her seem quite unintelligent for asking a question with such an obvious answer. Dumbledore merely looked at the young red head with amusement shining in his sparkling blue eyes.

"Mr Weasley, there is no certainty that one of you will be successful. However, there is a strong chance that if the right person goes, they will change the wizarding world as we know it. Mr Weasley, may I also add that your parents most likely do believe you and your… opinions of me but due to myself being quite powerful and annoyingly correct the majority of the time, they trust my judgement." Dumbledore said, arching an eyebrow and smirking at the embarrassed teenager. "Miss Granger, you are correct in the matter of the time turner. However, I have recently come across a book in my private library that has extremely rare spells. One of those spells was specifically made for time travelling back decades. Unfortunately you cannot read it, as the book has been spelled to only open to those above a certain age. I trust you are not 150 years old, are you Miss Granger?" Hermione could only shake her head, a smile lighting her face at his humour. Her questions were answered; however, she had many more that she wished to ask. Who was the wizard or witch who had created the spell? Had it been used before? Was it successful? Before she could ask any more questions the silver bearded man had begun talking to Harry. "Harry, you may be the 'Chosen One' but that may not be so in 1944. You are the 'Chosen One' here, in 1994. Things are drastically different. I must warn you all that one of you will be going back to a very dangerous time, when Tom is just about to reach his peak in his power and his skills. I believe there is only one of you who could observe, analyse and skilfully outsmart him. There is only one of you who can catch his attention. That is most important. Our aim is not to kill him; it is to change him for the better. Hermione," he said, turning towards the young and suddenly wide eyed girl, "I believe you would be best suited for this."

The spacious office was once again drowned in silence. Hermione's thoughts were running wild. She had no family left, her friends were all bound to die at some point in this war. Voldemort was only getting stronger as the days passed and he had far more followers than they did in Order members. But could she manage being on her own? Would she be able to survive? Of course she could, she was Hermione Granger, one of the Golden Trio. She'd made it this far, why couldn't she stop him before all her friends lost those who she lost. It's not as if she really had anything to lose.

"SHE IS NOT GOING BACK TO THAT MANIAC! YOU'RE BLOODY INSANE DUMBLEDORE! YOU BELONG IN ST. MUNGO'S. OVER MY DEAD BODY IS SHE GOING BACK 50 YEARS!"

"PROFESSOR DUMBLEDORE! I AM THE 'CHOSEN ONE'! THE PROPHECY SAID SO! I'M NOT ALLOWING ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS TO RISK THEIR LIVES WHEN IT SHOULD BE ME FACING THAT MURDERER!"

"OH SHUT UP YOU TWO!" The two boys instantly fell silent, their weary gazes on the terrifyingly angry red head who was hovering above them, her fingers pointed in each of their faces. "Hermione is more than capable of looking after herself. She uses her head instead of relying on her idiotic bravery. She thinks things through and she's more successful than you two could ever dream of. The fact that you two are trying to protect her is admirable but _she_ is only trying to protect _you_ and all of those that we've already lost. She could save so many lives! _I_ think she's a perfect choice. Now I don't want to hear another word from either of you until we've heard what Hermione has to say." With that, Ginny turned towards Hermione, her angry face morphing into a warm and comforting smile, urging her to say what was on her mind. She silently sat back down. Hermione now had all eyes on her.

"I think I can do it. I mean, it's not as if I have any family left, I don't really have much to lose." Seeing her two best friends opening their mouths to refute what she said, she quickly carried on. "I mean I know I have you but it's not the same. Ron, you have all of your family, you'll miss them too much if you go. Harry, you have Ginny and everyone knows you can't function properly without knowing she's by your side or safe with people you trust. If you go back, there's no guarantee we'd be able to protect her as well you do and you _know_ you can't live without her. Ginny obviously sees no problem with me going and Professor Dumbledore said that one of us needs to outsmart him. From what I've heard, Voldemort was the smartest wizard in his time throughout Hogwarts. If you two go, you'll never catch his eye. You need to be highly intelligent, top of the class, capable of doing social things _as well as_ homework and studying. It's _me_ that has to go Harry. I just _have _to and you know I do." With a sad but determined look on Hermione's face, she turned towards Dumbledore and asked, "So, when do I go?"

It was then that everything became a blur. Hermione was sitting down one moment, the next she was saying tearful goodbyes to her friends, the people she considered her family, papers were shoved into her hands by Dumbledore and the next thing she knew, Dumbledore was aiming his wand at her, muttering a spell in a foreign language and a blinding white light came hurtling towards her.

The headmaster's office was filled with five people only seconds ago and the now there were only four.


End file.
